Down in the Valley
by CoffeeGirl13
Summary: ZigzagOFC It was self defence, there's evidence to prove that so why am I being punished for it? And since when does the judicial system mix genders? Something's off here, you would think a murder case would at least have a little more publicity...


**A/N: Alright, I know this is idea is over done but bear with me okay. Anyway I hope you like this. Oh, and FYI, my beta (editor, whatever you want to call it) hasn't seen Holes so she didn't read it. Hopefully it's not too rough, though. Most of the time I catch most of the mistakes, hopefully it's the same here! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Holes. That's about all I have to say on the matter…I'm a little bitter…**

**Chapter 1: Day 1**

"Act like a boy," that's what Mr. Sir told me in his southern accent the day I arrived at Camp Green Lake. Act…like a boy. Inspiring words, I know, but let's just say I'm all right with being a part of the fair sex. I wouldn't change my gender for anything, especially not a dim-witted judge who can't understand the words 'all-boys-camp'. Besides I was pretty sure these people were juvenile delinquents, not stupid. _Not. Stupid_.

The counselor, a short man with tacky, white sun block smeared across his nose, escorted me to 'D-tent', where I would be staying, delivering a well-thought-out pep talk the entire way there. Luckily, it was dinnertime; no one would be out for a few more minutes yet. Dr. Pendanski waited with me. However, as I sat on my bed, he waited on the other side of the tent, throwing me nervous glances with increasing frequency. He was scared of me. As far as he knew, he should be. I, on the other hand, knew differently. I wasn't going to tell him that though.

Anxiously looking for something to do with idle hands, I reached up to tuck an ebony strand of hair behind my ear. Uncomfortably, I messed with the sleeves of my florescent orange uniform, silently thanking God that I looked all right, if not a little washed out, in the color. Maybe, I mused optimistically, it brought out the green in my otherwise brown eyes. I was already beginning to sweat in the sweltering heat and I had a strong feeling that within weeks my skin would loose its fair tone in favor of a more bronzed, freckled one. After, of course, it got over the ruby red sunburn that would undoubtedly form.

Slowly, sounds of life began to migrate from the mess hall, piercing the awkward silence of the residence. Before I knew it, my new roommates were filtering in giving me confused looks as though silently wondering why there was a girl in their tent.

"Let me introduce everyone," the counselor said in that falsely cheery tone after all the exhausted and curious boys had made their appearance. After a prolonged argument between the group and Pendanski, I had a pretty good idea of who everybody was, taking more note of their nicknames since they seemed to despise their real ones so much. There was X-Ray, their chocolate-skinned leader with oversized glasses, Armpit, whose constant odor brought reason to the name, Zero, he didn't talk much, Magnet, he talked _too _much, Squid, always had a toothpick, and Zigzag, a boy with crazy, blonde hair who stood taller that everyone else in the group. Apparently, the boys had dubbed the counselor 'Mom'.

"Everyone this is Melanie. She'll be joining you in your character-building for a while." Even as he spoke, the adult continued to stand on the other side of the room. "Um, let's see," he looked around speculatively, "how 'bout we have Ricky be your mentor." Suddenly, I couldn't seem to remember their _real_ names.

I must have appeared like a complete idiot sitting there and looking at them in utter confusion, trying to decide which one could possibly be 'Ricky'. However, Pendanski offered no help whatsoever; he, like the rest of them, decided that the appropriate reaction to my uncertainty would be to stand and stare at me, heightening my discomfort.

Finally, after opening and closing my mouth several times, I asked, "Is…that…Squid or…Zigzag?"

"Zig," X-Ray spoke up from across the room.

"So Melanie," Mom started, "would you like some dinner since you got here late?"

"I'm not hungry," I stated simply.

"Are you s—?"

"I'm. Not. Hungry," I restated, a bit more firmly this time. He may have behaved good-natured but, by the way he treated Zero, I was _fairly_ sure it was an act. I wasn't in the mood for that type of thing; I hadn't drunk any water all day and was growing quickly dehydrated and, I'll admit, grumpy. He nodded giving a nervous and obviously fake smile before exiting through the tent's flap.

"So Queen Bee," Armpit spoke up only moments after the counselor had left, X-Ray didn't object to the nickname so I supposed my title was chosen, "whatcha in for?"

I simply commanded, "Guess."

"Probably walked out of the beauty parlor without payin' for her manicure," Squid spoke up. They laughed at that.

"I didn't steal anything," I said over their chatter. Slowly the low roar died out.

"So," Magnet began, "you get sent to the wrong camp or something?"

"This is an all boys' camp, you know, so either you're a really pretty guy or you're not in the right place." That was X-Ray.

"She probably had to kill someone to get here," Zigzag had probably just been joking. However, as all eyes migrated my way, I remained silent. Quickly I stood to my feet, looking toward my 'mentor'.

"Where do I fill my canteen?" They understood what my lack of answer implied and I had a feeling that none of them were quite sure what to say. I raised an eyebrow at Zigzag, waiting for a reply.

"I'll, uh…take you over there."

"So were you…serious back there?" he asked looking down at me as we exited the tent. I was quite a bit shorter than he was, my head only coming a little below his shoulder.

"Serious about what?"

"How you got here?"

"I don't think I ever really said."

"But you might as well have." I gave a consenting nod, "So were you serious?"

I avoided his gaze, topping off the bottle and turning the faucet off. I was very aware of every glance thrown my way. It was as if they'd never seen a girl before. Some of their gazes made me feel…uncomfortable. Like they could see straight through my clothing…or they were imagining they could. I think Zig understood, or at least noticed, my discomfort because he began to walk a little faster. He wasn't done with his questioning yet, though.

"You were, weren't you?"

I stopped and turned toward him, "If I tell you, will you stop asking about it?"

"Yeah," he answered, seeming very eager.

"Then yes, I was serious," and I walked back into the tent, leaving him a few steps behind me.

"I think we should move Bee away from the tent's flap," he told the others as soon as we reentered the room, if you could really call it that. Mom had put me on what the boys informed me was Barfbag's bed. Next to it were three more beds, with three _more _beds across from them. And then there was Zero's cot. It was on the opposite side of the side of the tent and facing sideways, whereas the others faced forward.

"Yeah," X-Ray agreed, "Magnet you move over one. Bee you sleep in his spot."

"Why?" Actually, I had a good idea 'why' but the word poured through my open lips before I could summon the ability to stop it.

"Thieves aren't the only criminals around here," X-Ray told me seriously. I nodded. I was residing in an all-boys camp…and I was a girl. Suddenly, I couldn't help but wonder how many of the young men chatting outside were rapists. That last word alone scared me.

"How…did all of you get here?" I asked, abruptly becoming suspicious.

"Don't worry Bee," Zigzag started, "we all got arrested for stealing or fighting but never…" he trailed off and the other boys nodded. I let out an inaudible sigh, not letting any of then see the large amount of relief I felt, and laid apathetically on my new bed between Magnet and Zigzag's. After a moment the group's casual conversation continued on, the rise and fall of their voices lulling me to sleep.

x

_The front door creaked open, shrieking in the silence of my mom's apartment. I could hear _everything_ in that miniscule dwelling so the eerie squeaking of the entry did not go unnoticed. I sat up quickly, a wave of warmth radiating up my spine instead of the cold chill I'd expected. I pushed away the blanket quietly, though the sound of cloth sweeping across my bare legs sounded thunderous in the stillness. There was darkness all around me, smothering me, submerging me in its depths, yet I had not the courage to reach out for the easily obtained life preserver and turn on the light._

_Blood, there was so much blood; a crimson mirror sliding toward the bottoms of my bare feet. I couldn't move, I could only stand, my eyes glued to my reflection in the pool. All of the sudden, I didn't recognize myself. It was my eyes; they were too wide, too old, too dark to be my own. My arm was still heavy even though it hung loosely at my side without any burden to bear. And then I ran._

x

A strong, calloused hand shook my shoulder, pulling me from the depths of sleep. I opened tired lids with much difficulty and was greeted with the confused smoky blue eyes of Zigzag.

"Is something the matter?" I asked groggily and slightly irritated.

"You woke me up tossin' and turnin' over here," he sounded agitated but, if I wasn't mistaken, slightly worried. I looked over to my right.

"Magnet's still asleep."

"That boy could sleep through a hurricane."

"Luckily, he won't have to worry about them around here, now will he?"

"No I guess not." There was a pause.

"Can I go back to sleep now Zigzag?" I must have sounded exhausted because he looked rather amused before continuing on.

"I wouldn't bother," he stated standing to his feet, "they're gonna wake us up here in a minute anyway."

"Are you serio—," the wake up call crackled to life.

"Told ya." I sighed in aggravation before beginning to change into my florescent 'work' jumpsuit. Immediately I was aware of several male eyes fixed in my direction.

"I know you guys haven't seen a girl in a while but could you refrain from gawking," I told them without looking up. They must have been too tired to argue because none of them replied with a rude comeback.

It was cool out; I had a feeling that it was the coolest it would be all day so I drank in the chilled air as much as possible in my bleary state. I followed my tent-mates to a line of people in the back of the camp. We were standing in front of a small wooden shed with the word 'library' scrawled in messy white paint over the building's door. However when the entry was opened, rows of shovels lined the wall in the place of books. Mr. Sir handed me my tool for digging. There was something about the way it weighed on my arm, the strain it put in my shoulder, that I didn't like.

I pushed the thought aside as X-Ray's arm darted for the shovel in my hand. Heightened as my reflexes had been ever since—well…for a while, the exertion it took to pull the spade away from his grasp wasn't much.

"You've got your own shovel, what do you need mine for?" I asked in confusion. By the look on his face, I could tell he hadn't been expecting me to anticipate his move.

"It's smaller than all the rest," Zigzag told me tiredly as he walked by. I gave a small, understanding nod.

"If the shovel's smaller, then so is the hole," I stated with a smirk. After a short, pregnant pause, I put out my unoccupied hand to take the tool he held, still grasping the other one out of his reach. After he handed it to me, I extended the arm with 'his' shovel but didn't let go immediately.

"If you wanted it, you could have just asked. You didn't have to be such an asshole about it." With that, I let go, giving the wooden shaft a small shove. I really wasn't use to being so mean to other people but if I didn't put on the tough act, I had a feeling these boys would walk all over me. That was an idea I didn't like at all.

x

Digging holes was a lot more difficult than I had expected. I hadn't predicted how hard the soil would be or that I'd have to use up a quarter of my water just to break the surface. It was so much hotter out when I was doing work than in the confines of the tent. I never thought I'd consider that oven of dwelling cool but as I pressed my shovel into the dry earth once more, I would have given anything to be back there.

When I had gotten about two, maybe three feet down, Squid and Armpit resumed what I assumed was standard hazing. The fact that it was normal didn't make me like them throwing their discarded dirt in _my_ hole any better.

"Hey," I started, trying to be a little nicer than before, "could you stop thr—."

"Would you shut up," Squid interrupted.

"Yeah be quiet man," Armpit said at around the same time as his friend. Well that just tore it.

"Throw your dirt in your own pile," I commanded, casting my attempt at kindness aside.

"Why should I?" Squid asked.

"It's really simple, if you don't I will take this shovel and do exactly what I did to get in here to get out!" It was all talk, obviously, but it seemed to do the trick. He looked a little peeved but both he and his partner-in-crime shoveled their dirt elsewhere.

The truck came by a little while later, Mr. Sir behind the wheel. I had never craved water more in my entire life. It was as though every last drop of moisture in my entire body had dried completely up and now needed to be totally replenished. I didn't take off my work gloves either. Beneath them, I could feel the bloody blisters that had only grown larger each time I shoved my spade into the ground. There was no way I was letting them see any weakness on my part. That would be a death sentence.

I pulled myself from the hole I'd been digging right as Zigzag walked by. He assured me that the first hole was the hardest. I doubted it. It didn't really bother me that I was the last one to make my way over to the water line—water was water—however before I could move to the back of the row, Squid spoke up.

"Lady's first," he told me, motioning in front of him. Beneath his courteous tone, there was some sort of resentment that I didn't quite understand. I backtracked. That put me third in line. By the looks on everyone, including Mr. Sir's faces I had a feeling that was a good thing.

"So how's your first day goin'?" the adult asked in a slightly smug voice.

I shrugged, "Fine I guess," my tone was impertinent, I knew, but he didn't seem phased. I was lying of course. Not in any way, shape, or form was I 'fine'. I was in a living Hell…Mr. Sir didn't have to know that though. I got my water and went back to digging my hole.

Never in my life had I had the patience to dig much deeper than a few inches so I took longer than the rest to finish on my first day. As soon as I was done, I realized that I was faced with a rather large problem. Most of the boys, Zero aside, were at _least_ a foot taller than the five-foot hole they dug. I, on the other had, was only a few inches over that of my shovel, my measuring stick. I was too tired after an entire day of digging to pull myself out. This could present a problem.

"You need help, down there?" A voice said from above. I looked up, squinting in the sunlight, to see Zigzag's wild blonde hair. I nodded tiredly. He reached down to grasp my hand, giving me a firm tug upward. As soon as I reached the surface, however, dizziness got the best of me, sending my body tumbling into the boy in front of me.

"Whoa," he said, catching me by the elbows. I stood back to my feet, shaking my head furiously.

"Sorry," I held my forehead.

"You alright?" he tried to sound like he didn't care. He did.

"Yeah I'm fine," I shook my head again and looked up, "last night was the first time I've slept in a while, is all." He nodded once.

"I'll give ya a ride," he told me suddenly. I wasn't quite sure what he meant.

"What?" He pointed to his back. "Carry me?" I questioned. He nodded, "Are you sure?" He gave another nod. I was hesitant at first but wasn't about to miss an opportunity to take a load off my feet.

After Zig had turned around, I wrapped weak arms around his neck uncertainly, holding my shovel at an odd angle in front of him in an effort to keep my grip on the spade's wooden shaft and not hit him with it. I still hadn't taken off my gloves.

"I'll jump on the count of three. One, two, three." I jumped. He didn't catch me.

"Sorry, I thought you meant _after _the three."

"Okay this time, I'll jump _on_ the count of three," I told him with a chuckle, my arms still fastened around his neck, "one, two, three." I jumped. He caught me. The entire way there, he never let me down; I asked him if he needed to, if he was tired but he never did. Secretly, I was glad. I liked the close proximity to him. I didn't know why.

x

When dinner came around, dirt still covered me. I had changed into my jumpsuit for relaxation, washed my face furiously, and dusted out my hair as much as possible but for the first time in my life I felt as though grime had suddenly discovered the ability to grow.

I had another problem, only a simple shower couldn't solve this one. Now, I know smoking is bad for you and I know I shouldn't have done it but…I guess I could blame my mom. She always smoked and, well, growing up around it made me more receptive to the habit. That's not an excuse though. I really shouldn't pawn off my problems on other people.

Anyway, Camp Green Lake, as you could probably guess, did not permit cigarettes so I was having a terrible and rather annoying craving for them. If nothing else, at least 'camp' would break me of that particular addiction.

I'm not sure what they were supposed to be serving us but Green Lake's food looked remarkably like pig slop. I didn't think anyone would appreciate it if I commented on this however. Grimacing I walked away from the service isle. As I walked past the boys of D-tent, Zigzag stopped me motioning me to 'my seat' between him and X-Ray. Vaguely I wondered if they came up with a seating arrangement for everything. Obviously so.

"What _is_ this?" I asked, looking down at the 'main course'.

"They say it's chili," Zig told me, "I'm putting my money on nuclear waste."

I ignored the second half of his statement, "Does that mean it has beef in it?"

"Somethin' like it," Squid looked down at his with a barely detectable grimace.

"Does, uh, anyone want mine?"

"I know it looks gross but you should eat it," X-Ray informed me, "it's all you get."

"No, that's not—I mean, yeah, it looks pretty nasty but—."

"But what?" Magnet spoke up. "You not hungry or something?"

"I'm hungry I just—," I was very aware of how intently each of them was staring at me, "I can't."

"Why can't you?" asked Armpit. I mumbled incoherently.

"What?" Zigzag questioned.

"I'm a…" another inaudible slur. I think Zig, at least, understood what I had said because a small smirk began to play out on his lips.

"One more time, Bee," he ordered, sounding amused.

I sighed, sending him a glare, "I'm a vegetarian."

Squid laughed, "You don't eat meat?"

"That's the general idea of a vegetarian, yes."

"Why not?" X-Ray sounded amused as well.

"I just don't like the idea of eating something that once had a face, is all."

They all got a kick out of that for a while before moving on to the next topic. I wasn't paying attention though. Their teasing had served as means of distracting me from my nicotine craving for a while but it was back now and keeping me from eating.

"Look at her, she too tired to even lift her spoon," Zigzag spoke up. "Whoa," he said, noticing my palms, "look at those blisters." Everyone winced as I flipped them over to inspect the gashed more closely. I was too distracted to notice.

"Does anyone around here smoke?" I asked suddenly.

"Mr. Sir used to," Magnet told me, "that's why he's always gnawing on those sunflowers seeds."

"Anyone else?" Everyone shook their head. It was official: I was screwed.

x

The sun was beginning to set over the camp, giving the distant mountains a misleadingly serene silhouette. All of my tent mates, however, were still hauled up in the rec room playing games and whatnot. I, on the other hand, was lying down on the small cot I'd been provided with my hands lifted over me so I could stare distantly at the bloody blisters.

"Does it hurt?" said a now familiar voice from the tent's entryway. Zigzag. Any time I was alone, he seemed to show up. I nodded unable to summon energy enough to speak. "Just wait 'til tomorrow." I sighed, sitting up with my eyes still glued to my palms.

"I can help with that," I raised an eyebrow, "you know, keep it from getting' a bunch of dust in it." I looked at him skeptically but nodded in consent. He sat down across from me on his bed, putting out both hands. Hesitantly, I laid my own atop his, palms up.

"Thanks," I said finally, my throat dry and raspy, "not just for this. For carrying me too."

He shrugged fixing his eyes on my hands. The gashes were already riddled with dirt even after the shower I finished only a few minutes before. And let me tell you, stripping down to my bra and underwear in front of a camp of gawking boys was possibly the most embarrassing situation I've ever been forced to live through. It did make for a speedy shower though.

Anyway, Zig used his water to clean my hands. I don't know where he found the cloth to wrap them with but I didn't ask. Instead, I sat silently, not knowing quite what to say nor having the courage to say anything even if I did. When he was done, I muttered a silent 'thank you' as the other boys began to filter in. Their voices melded together as the tiredness of my body was over taken by sleep.

**Okay I hope you like it! Review! Constructive criticism is welcome, flames are not! **

**-CoffeeGirl13**


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